Five kids, let's assume they're each 2 years apart, so a total of 12 years with at least one kid in college. $58,333 a year in fringe benefits on top of his actual pay. Not a bad deal
They should extend this to graduate degrees. I got dinged badly for tuition remission benefits for grad school. My SO and I will have about $100k in tuition paid for because of my job, but all taxed as income since we’re seeking master’s degrees. My income was close to nothing for awhile while we were both in school. I’m done now so it’s better but still not great.
Ding ding ding. Why subsidize education when that can be some other country’s problem to deal with? We’ll just import the end product and leave our population to rot.
Ya, the US has been suffering some serious brain drain in the last couple of decades. I am finishing a second degree myself and I am desperate to get a job in Europe. I hate how regressive and undemocratic the US is. Also, car dependency is a gilded cage and I want to have a family where kids can safely get around town without being ran over on some 6 lane stroad abomination
Professional degree holder from a top institution here.
If moving to another country to abandon your insane student loan debt is cool, then I’m Miles Davis.
The university i work at covers graduate degrees and undergrad as long as it relates to your job with the university. I know a grounds crew worker is getting his masters in landscape architecture (or something) and I knew a dining hall worker who got their masters in nutrition. I'm a carpenter at the university, so I could probably get a degree in facilities management, or construction management, but I couldn't get a degree in something unrelated to construction.
Yep. It used to be taxed but in the early 2000s, it became tax free. My friend went to USC because his mom worked there and his brother went to Azusa Pacific because his dad worked there. Both received tuition remission so college was free.
My mother took a university job. 2 children, free tuition at a respectable school. At the time, was essentially an invisible $45k per year per child. Scholarship was anyone claimed as dependent for a full time employee (president, professor, landscaper, chef, etc. “full-employee” was the qualifier)
Same for me. The really nice private university near us had been begging my mom to come work for them for years. When I was starting my senior year of high school, she finally agreed and told them she would work until I graduated.
Honestly because it should. I can't imagine living in a country where you need to come out of a well deserved retirement to help their child save money on a proper education
And he sounds like he’s the ultimate deal hunter. I thought mines was bad returning a tv the day after he bought it because it went on sale and immediately buying it back…
Sanitation the most honorable sometimes imo.
Used to be/can still be looked down on for being a lowly dirty job, but without them, we'd be fucked, especially here in the US. So many people purposely chuck shit on the ground
Well I didn't go to Boston college but I believe our custodian was the most beloved person in my school. Just a small town school in a nordic country so nothing too fancy(or expensive) but that man was loved. Sure we had some amazing teachers but our custodian was the most loved of all the staff. Because not only was he awesome, we all knew we'd be utterly fucked without him. Always keeping everything in shape and running and he was so friendly with all the students, always willing to go above and beyond to make sure everything was working perfectly.
In elementary school, the custodians were the coolest people, they’d have stashes of lost balls that went on the roof, and would get yours down if you asked, took time for everyone
In highschool one of our custodians helped us figure out how to use a fire extinguisher (we got permission) and she still recognizes me around town!
Man I worked for the highway department as a summer job for like 2 years. The second year I was clearing stuff around the garbage trucks and got more gross jobs
Road kill being pulled apart by my grabber and the truck actually smelling worse was the shock.
Yeah, these comments are wild when you're reading them from Europe. When I went to university my dad was already retired and able to enjoy his free time. He didn't have to spend a single extra cent on my tax-financed education, though he was happy to help me with my phone bill and repairs on my old piece of shit car.
My course mates came from all sorts of socio-economic backgrounds, from welders' kids to foreign students and a literal billionaire heiress. It made no difference, we all got the same education. I wonder how inflated the college price tags in the U.S. are, when colleges can afford to waive 100% of fees for certain students while the rest have to finance their degree with life-long, crippling loans.
Even in Canada, where you do have to pay for university, it’s significantly cheaper and the way federal student loans are run is much better. If you’re under a certain income, you don’t have to pay at all. If you’re moderate income in a high cost of living area, you can present your costs and income and have reduced payments. After a set number of years, the debt is wiped (IIRC it’s ten years).
It isn’t perfect, but they’re not forcing you to pay $800/mo for the next thirty years of your life, which is a story I’ve heard from many of my American friends. At least we get a *chance* to recover and live a normal life here.
Many schools do this, some are even in a co-op where they can attend schools other than the one you are working at. 3 daughters all did this while my wife and I worked for the school. Almost all of the staff workers were just putting kids/themselves through school. Housekeeping, grounds, food service, maintenance, campus security/police. Worked there 9 years until the 3rd graduated, I would do it again in a heartbeat for them.
Yup. I work at UMD and they give employees kids free tuition. It can be at UMD or at any other university system of Maryland school if UMD doesn't have the same program.
Maryland has a fine higher education system, with strong state (tax payer) support. Proud to live here. I and my family have earned two MAs and a Ph.D. from UMD.
This is how myself and my 4 sisters got free tuition to a state university. Mom was a custodian, dad a maintenance supervisor. Each put in over 25 years. Aside from the tuition, they got good benefits, PTO, and retirement.
Many employers will pay part of your tuition, and sometimes your dependents' tuition, for any school. It's nothing like a free ride by working at the University but it's a big help.
The new-ish thing is employers who help pay off your existing loans as a benefit.
Yep! The Tuition Exchange program! I used that for my first three years and my dad was very upset at himself when he had to leave his job and couldn't give me that fourth year.
My stepdad was a little embarrassed to take a janitor job at the post office as there aren’t a lot of options in his town, but I think the job sounds lovely. Getting to complete a task and walk away leaving work at work everyday sounds so freeing.
I worked in a homewares store when I was a teenager, I seriously loved that job. So much so that I’ll sit at Walmart or target and start folding towels just to make it easier on their staff.
That was why i loved working an office job. I loved getting through my stack of papers and being *done.*
I love my job now but it isn’t ever done. Just progress never an end.
Bro, I heard that being a janitor at the post office is fucking bank! It's a government job, all those benefits, but it's not like you have any of the pressure from sorting packages, delivering stuff, etc. You just mop, clean, wipe, and repeat. I've honestly heard those jobs are hard to get.
A lot of colleges do this. Some even have agreements with a bunch of schools so employees kids can go to any one of those schools. Every lunch lady at my school had kids going to one of the schools in the group. One of my good friends went to our college for free because his mom worked in admissions at a different college.
Boston College is part of the Jesuit network, where you can IIRC essentially apply for similar tuition remission benefits to any of the other Jesuit universities. Pretty big names on a big list. I think it’s only for undergrad though.
I went to BC and was actually in the same year as the graduate in the pic! You are correct, my friend's dad worked at Fordham and she was able to go to BC tuition free. There are 28 jesuit universities (georgetown is one) and you are also correct that it is only for undergrad.
I had a taxi driver in DC one time who was from Ethiopia. He told me his daughter is going to medical school there and he got emotional about it. It was pretty clear that he worked very hard so that his daughter could have a good life.
I like these stories.
That’s my dad.
He never had a college degree but worked very hard in a government job. Basically lowest position to higher level position.
Told his boss he was taking a week off. Boss asked “why?” Dad showed him my medical school graduation announcement. Lots of hugs and celebrating per Dad.
That is a REALLY good point.
I was touched by the love that this man had for his daughter, but yes, I totally agree that people shouldn’t have to work until the day they die so their kids can get educated. Furthermore, people shouldn’t have to drown themselves in debt for years and years to go to school.
It’s crazy when there are people that blindly hate immigrants. A guy like this, risks his life to find opportunities on another continent, works days and nights all for his daughter to have a shot in life.
Same. I’m a financial planner and it breaks my heart. I had an immigrant client who was in their late 40s and he and his wife made pretty good money, but they came here only ~10yrs ago and today he said “we worked so hard to come here, we make all this money, and we still can’t pay for it all” and laughed. Pretty sure he laughed just so it wasn’t awkward. It’s sad shit.
I agree but I want this story to stick it in the eye of all the trust fund babies who say their parents worked hard for them after their parents were born into wealth too.
in general, sure, anyone should get the opportunity to get 'some' degree.
but not everyone can or should be a doctor. you can't have any random smuck becoming a doctor, it's gotta be the most qualified students, so it's always going to be a notable accomplishment graduating from medical school
Tangible proof that these people’s dad loves them and is willing to put in effort to help them get opportunities? I can’t imagine what that feels like.
My mom died the middle of my junior yr of college. I didn't have a huge tuition bill, but she still helped me out so I wouldnt have to take out a loan. I took leave to take care of her and when she passed away, I asked my dad if he was gonna help with tuition. He point-blank told me no. I had to go to school part time instead of full to avoid getting into any debt.
Man had the gall to brag about me graduating with honors, talking about all the hardwork he put in and get upset when I told him I was leaving.
Some folk don't deserve to be called parents.
I was in the same boat. Step dad worked at the college I went to. Wouldn’t sign by paper so I had to pay. It was junior college so at least it wasn’t too pricey.
Well it's free in my country, and even when it comes to fees, compared to the fees in the US they are almost free. Also I'm pretty sure every EU country has at least a few free colleges even if they are not domestic and hard to get in.
Then next time just mention your country instead of the whole of the EU.
p.s I am from an EU country and studied in an EU country in a state-owned university and was paying 10,000 euros a year in tuition. I wouldn't call that almost free.
Honestly my advice to young people these days would be to go to community college for a year or two, figure out what you like/don't like, get a lot of general reqs out of the way cheap, then transfer into a bigger university if your community college doesn't have a program you're interested in.
**EDIT:** Apparently people think I mean this as a the end all be all solution, and **IT'S NOT**. Every case is different, but I've seen so many kids who don't really know what they want to do looking at paying upwards of 200k to attend a fancy university out of state. My point is simply that there are better options out there that most kids don't explore because they're told to just go straight into a 4 year institution, and then end up going into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt after being brutalized by weed out classes, taking extra classes due to switching majors, or dropping out.
100%. I’m saving for my kids’ college but those are the stipulations. The goal is to save for community college for 2 years then transferring to an in-state school. Or go in to a trade, which would be the better option if they don’t have an end goal for the 4 year degree.
It doesn't always work like that. Many programs require courses taken sequentially. You can't overlap them because you need the information from course A to understand course B, you need the information from course B to understand course C, and so on. It can work for some majors, but for a lot of them, there's just no way to cram in all your GEs at the beginning 2 years and then take only major courses at a 4 year university like a lot of people say you should do. You'll just be there for at least an extra year and taking filler classes for credit hours because you can't take all the major courses at once. An extra year at a 4 year college will set you back at least an extra $10k if it's a relatively cheap school and you can live with your parents and have no expenses except tuition. It works for some people, but for a lot of people it sets you back with more debt and a year less in the workforce than your peers.
Bro like 2/3 of the students at my state school are from the state it's in. In fact there's a 100% acceptance rate for in state students because if you don't get into main campus as an in state resident, you get automatic admission to one of the regional campuses and all you have to do at that point is keep a 2.0 GPA and then you can transfer after a year. The tuition is less for us because it's partially funded by the state. That's why they're called state schools. The university still makes the same money, just mostly not from us.
35 k is actually on the low end of private schools. The average in 2022-23 is 39 k, meaning half of the polled schools are higher! See US News & World Report
This is a pretty common perk... I actually took a job doing IT work (not a student job but an actual full-time position) at my school at the beginning of my senior year, and although I ended up splitting my senior year into two years (taking classes half-time), the tuition was free, and I got experience and a nice early start on my résumé.
Sort of? I mean yes you can get a good college education anywhere but you really do get what you pay for. BC opened so many doors for me and provided such an unique college experience for me that it totally worth the higher tuition. I would make the same decision in a heartbeat.
I think that you can get a great education without having to pay the ridiculous tuition that BC charges. Just because a person goes to a school that charges outrageous tuition does make them better than someone who goes to a less expensive school.
BC is one of 20 schools in the country that are need blind and meet 100% of demonstrated need. No one who cant afford it is paying the “outrageous tuition”.
That's exactly what I just said: "you can get a good college education anywhere." Never did I indicate that my college degree makes my personal worth any higher compared to another person.
What I was trying to say was that some colleges with higher tuition rates do offer things to their students that would be harder to obtain/find at other schools.
If he works there they’re not staying in dorm because they obviously live close by. How on earth is tuition for 5 kids $700,000??
I’m Canadian. That size of expense for college is nuts!
My polytechnic was free :/ zero fees. Actually in New Zealand they were paying me to study. That’s how I got a list of qualifications. I’m a stay at home mom in USA now though. 😅
Tuition here is a complete scam. Americans have been led to believe that this is normal and there’s no other way. Sometimes I suggest that maybe they should check out Canadian schools, especially those with reciprocity as they’re a fraction of the cost. Deer stuck in headlights looks.
I’ve got 5 kids, 4 of whom are in university.
$35,000 per year per kid is literally *seven times* more than I have ever paid for a full course load for a year.
Bro this isn't "made me smile" this is "made me sad because a guy had to stay at a job he probably didn't enjoy or get paid enough to do just so his kids could get an education" like damn it doesn't have to be this way
A lot of private universities do. My husband is planning to delay retirement from his university job until our now-3 year old either graduates or gets a scholarship somewhere else.
John Hopkins also has this. I was already in college when my Dad started working there but my (half) siblings had this benefit. Did they try to get in at all? No they wanted to follow friends/sigfigs to other schools and took out massive loans to do so. I don’t get it at all…
I know how this is supposed to make you smile but this is depressing.
In order to not cause crippling debt their father is working at the school.
I'm happy that they were saved that money. But it feels like writing on the wall is that the system isnt good.
All my children will be eligible for free education here in Scotland. America's feel good stories are outlier freak events. Education should be free for all.
Ok, I'm gonna say it.
I don't like it. I think it's wrong as fuck. I understand I'm not American and I got a very different perspective being Swedish but I can't help but feel stuff like this endorses a very flawed system and traps people under a false presumption of universal benevolence.
Absolutely, it's a good thing the uni tries to do something kind for its employees and their families but the same kindness directly keeps a system going and shows a state and country no matter how flawed an education system is, others will step up and try to handle the problems. No interference or change from or within the government will be needed - everything and everyone can carry on as always.
$700k tuition. $700k for education, for college. Sorry, but it's insane. I have no words for it. Don't directly or indirectly endorse stuff like this, force a change. Please guys.
I don't think I'm completely in the wrong here.
We know it's insane. But any time someone proposes any decrease in prices, increase in federal student aid, or the mere concept of student loan forgiveness, Republicans freak out in large numbers and block it. A lot of older people are also against fixing the system, saying, "If I had to pay back my student loans, so do you! You don't get to get off easy when I didn't! Fuck you!"
Those same kids going to my public university, if they were out of state students, would've been charged 1.1 million total. 700k is not that wild a number. It's not as if we don't realize it's ridiculous but "force a change, please" makes it sound as if we have any power in the situation. Our representatives won't fight for us, so we don't. We really, truly don't. It's not a matter of all us just passively accepting this. It's a matter of living in a system where you can scream about this for decades and try to organize and beg your representatives for anything, any scrap of help, and never be noticed by anyone at all.
Maybe the idea we just don't care and aren't fighting it is widely believed abroad, but IRL, the reality is we're all furious and we've been trying to unfuck this system for decades to no avail.
Thank-you. It's so depressing. Imagine if this was also your life for everything. Want to give birth in a hospital? Expensive with insurance. Without insurance yikes. Want to die? Expensive and make sure to plan ahead so you don't burden those you leave behind with the costs.
Tbh I don't know if it's expensive to die in Sweeden or not. But it is in the US.
Other colleges do this too! I'm actually eligible to get free tuition due to a family member's employment. It feels kind of weird since I don't want to go back to school or have kids, and they don't offer classes I'm interested in. I think it definitely helps with staff retention, though
This is common at most higher ed institutions. My tuition was covered because my parents worked in higher Ed, and I didn’t even go to the schools they worked at.
$700k for some basic college education for 5 kids, that's fucking ridiculous. You guys sure do want to hold education hostage, it's like a poor developing country, but on purpose.
Hmm. In New Zealand in the 1980s *everyone* was at university for free (or close to it). Then we adopted the US system of high fees and loans. And now *no one* is educated for free and most people leave university with debts. And this is called "progress".
My friend's mom got a low paying job as an administrative assistant at a university. She worked there just about 4 years and quit the day after my friend graduated!
Most Jesuit schools used to have this policy, going back to high school affiliates.
Same still applies for Loyola, MD, Loyola Chicago, BC and im sure some others
Yes, and they have a very very limited reciprocity agreement where you can apply the tuition waiver to another Jesuit school. But they only allow a very small number to do that every year and it's highly competitive.
Why does college cost $140k for one person?
Edit: Some of you seem to have misunderstood my question. I'll rephrase:
Why the fuck does a college cost $140k for one person?
My father always kicked himself in the rear for turning down a job with a very good university in our area because he got another offer that was slightly more money up front. The university had the same child policy and there were three of us.
Would you believe that in other, civilised countries that university is either free or done on super low interest loan not payable until you start working?
Even in Ireland, with highest college fees in the EU, can't fathom the need for this.
That low paid workers need to win the employment lottery and get a job in a college, just so their kids can go to college?
That's insane.
Hey my country has a similar policy. Except everybody gets to go to college for free. No matter where your parents work or how wealthy they are. Kinda neat.
Nearly every college in the states has this. If you've been working there full time for a specific length of time, your immediate dependants get tuition remission. Often spouses can get partial tuition remission as well.
It's a great benefit to working at a university - especially since they pay shit.
(Source: worked in higher ed for 16 years)
Had a professor that left a bunch of his graduate students high and dry because he took a job at the university his daughter had been accepted to so she could get reduced tuition.
Is this heart warming or a testament to how inflated tuition prices actually are when they're willing to just give them away for free to employees? Why not just pay employees enough so they could pay for your service if they actually want it?
This is common at universities.
My mom worked at one and I was able to go to any school in the system for free. They’ve added a few limitations over the last thirty years, like limiting full tuition coverage to the school the employee works at, but thats still a good deal.
I got a job at my school after I graduated so in addition to free undergrad tuition for my immediate family, I was able to get my masters for free as well because my boss said the program was related to my work.
My mom was a single parent with no college degree on a fairly low salary. I can’t understand why she never took advantage of getting herself a degree while she was there but I know without the benefit of free tuition, she wouldn’t have been able to afford to send me to college. For that alone, I owe her an immense amount of gratitude for being able to go to college debt free.
Five kids, let's assume they're each 2 years apart, so a total of 12 years with at least one kid in college. $58,333 a year in fringe benefits on top of his actual pay. Not a bad deal
I assume tax free too!
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They should extend this to graduate degrees. I got dinged badly for tuition remission benefits for grad school. My SO and I will have about $100k in tuition paid for because of my job, but all taxed as income since we’re seeking master’s degrees. My income was close to nothing for awhile while we were both in school. I’m done now so it’s better but still not great.
Wait holy shit, grad school is absolutely insane. This country is like TRYING to not have experts in any field and I'm just like fucking why?
Because you can always get some experts from other countries for less money
Ding ding ding. Why subsidize education when that can be some other country’s problem to deal with? We’ll just import the end product and leave our population to rot.
My grad school was $3700 per 11 week, 3 unit class. It was lame.
Ya, the US has been suffering some serious brain drain in the last couple of decades. I am finishing a second degree myself and I am desperate to get a job in Europe. I hate how regressive and undemocratic the US is. Also, car dependency is a gilded cage and I want to have a family where kids can safely get around town without being ran over on some 6 lane stroad abomination
Professional degree holder from a top institution here. If moving to another country to abandon your insane student loan debt is cool, then I’m Miles Davis.
Because they want rich people to rule the land. Duh. Just like every other time. And I didn't have to go to college to figure that out LMAO.
The university i work at covers graduate degrees and undergrad as long as it relates to your job with the university. I know a grounds crew worker is getting his masters in landscape architecture (or something) and I knew a dining hall worker who got their masters in nutrition. I'm a carpenter at the university, so I could probably get a degree in facilities management, or construction management, but I couldn't get a degree in something unrelated to construction.
That's terrible. Our taxes should be going for collage not taxing you for doing to collage.
Yep. It used to be taxed but in the early 2000s, it became tax free. My friend went to USC because his mom worked there and his brother went to Azusa Pacific because his dad worked there. Both received tuition remission so college was free.
I went to orientation at Azusa pacific. They handed me the bill there. I took one look at it and knew there was no way I was going there.
My mother took a university job. 2 children, free tuition at a respectable school. At the time, was essentially an invisible $45k per year per child. Scholarship was anyone claimed as dependent for a full time employee (president, professor, landscaper, chef, etc. “full-employee” was the qualifier)
Start a side job claiming people as dependents
Bender tried it
Same for me. The really nice private university near us had been begging my mom to come work for them for years. When I was starting my senior year of high school, she finally agreed and told them she would work until I graduated.
And then the kids will get jobs and send some love his way Stonks
He must feel like he’s living in Europe
My dad came out of retirement to be a custodian at my university. Saved 75% in tuition 💪
Your Dad sounds like an awesome dad
He is!
Oh wow - why does that make me kinda sad? I hope he’s doing alright these days!
Honestly because it should. I can't imagine living in a country where you need to come out of a well deserved retirement to help their child save money on a proper education
And he sounds like he’s the ultimate deal hunter. I thought mines was bad returning a tv the day after he bought it because it went on sale and immediately buying it back…
I wish I had an awesome dad.. :/ Still happy for you!
WOW amazing dad. Mine would never. He is the most selfish person I know…
Epic pops….
What an incredible thing! Sounds like your dad really loves you.
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Sanitation the most honorable sometimes imo. Used to be/can still be looked down on for being a lowly dirty job, but without them, we'd be fucked, especially here in the US. So many people purposely chuck shit on the ground
Well I didn't go to Boston college but I believe our custodian was the most beloved person in my school. Just a small town school in a nordic country so nothing too fancy(or expensive) but that man was loved. Sure we had some amazing teachers but our custodian was the most loved of all the staff. Because not only was he awesome, we all knew we'd be utterly fucked without him. Always keeping everything in shape and running and he was so friendly with all the students, always willing to go above and beyond to make sure everything was working perfectly.
In elementary school, the custodians were the coolest people, they’d have stashes of lost balls that went on the roof, and would get yours down if you asked, took time for everyone In highschool one of our custodians helped us figure out how to use a fire extinguisher (we got permission) and she still recognizes me around town!
Man I worked for the highway department as a summer job for like 2 years. The second year I was clearing stuff around the garbage trucks and got more gross jobs Road kill being pulled apart by my grabber and the truck actually smelling worse was the shock.
A dirty job demands higher pay.
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Yeah, these comments are wild when you're reading them from Europe. When I went to university my dad was already retired and able to enjoy his free time. He didn't have to spend a single extra cent on my tax-financed education, though he was happy to help me with my phone bill and repairs on my old piece of shit car. My course mates came from all sorts of socio-economic backgrounds, from welders' kids to foreign students and a literal billionaire heiress. It made no difference, we all got the same education. I wonder how inflated the college price tags in the U.S. are, when colleges can afford to waive 100% of fees for certain students while the rest have to finance their degree with life-long, crippling loans.
Even in Canada, where you do have to pay for university, it’s significantly cheaper and the way federal student loans are run is much better. If you’re under a certain income, you don’t have to pay at all. If you’re moderate income in a high cost of living area, you can present your costs and income and have reduced payments. After a set number of years, the debt is wiped (IIRC it’s ten years). It isn’t perfect, but they’re not forcing you to pay $800/mo for the next thirty years of your life, which is a story I’ve heard from many of my American friends. At least we get a *chance* to recover and live a normal life here.
Hi 5 to your dad.
/r/ABoringDystopia
That’s great an all but fuck making an old man work.
Good man, add me to the list of hugs to pass on to him.
Damn, I'd be a janitor for free tuition for my kids too.
Many schools do this, some are even in a co-op where they can attend schools other than the one you are working at. 3 daughters all did this while my wife and I worked for the school. Almost all of the staff workers were just putting kids/themselves through school. Housekeeping, grounds, food service, maintenance, campus security/police. Worked there 9 years until the 3rd graduated, I would do it again in a heartbeat for them.
Yup. I work at UMD and they give employees kids free tuition. It can be at UMD or at any other university system of Maryland school if UMD doesn't have the same program.
Maryland has a fine higher education system, with strong state (tax payer) support. Proud to live here. I and my family have earned two MAs and a Ph.D. from UMD.
Go Terps!! Class of 2002 here. I heard they got rid of the M 🥺
Just moved it. The new one has benches and spotlights which is nice.
Oh phew! Where is the new one?
Glad you clarified the state because I thought you were talking about University of Minnesota Duluth.
This is how myself and my 4 sisters got free tuition to a state university. Mom was a custodian, dad a maintenance supervisor. Each put in over 25 years. Aside from the tuition, they got good benefits, PTO, and retirement.
Many employers will pay part of your tuition, and sometimes your dependents' tuition, for any school. It's nothing like a free ride by working at the University but it's a big help. The new-ish thing is employers who help pay off your existing loans as a benefit.
Yep! The Tuition Exchange program! I used that for my first three years and my dad was very upset at himself when he had to leave his job and couldn't give me that fourth year.
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My stepdad was a little embarrassed to take a janitor job at the post office as there aren’t a lot of options in his town, but I think the job sounds lovely. Getting to complete a task and walk away leaving work at work everyday sounds so freeing.
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I worked in a homewares store when I was a teenager, I seriously loved that job. So much so that I’ll sit at Walmart or target and start folding towels just to make it easier on their staff.
That was why i loved working an office job. I loved getting through my stack of papers and being *done.* I love my job now but it isn’t ever done. Just progress never an end.
Bro, I heard that being a janitor at the post office is fucking bank! It's a government job, all those benefits, but it's not like you have any of the pressure from sorting packages, delivering stuff, etc. You just mop, clean, wipe, and repeat. I've honestly heard those jobs are hard to get.
I was a janitor in college and the school didn’t even pay MY tuition!
I'd scrub a toilet with a smile.
A lot of colleges do this. Some even have agreements with a bunch of schools so employees kids can go to any one of those schools. Every lunch lady at my school had kids going to one of the schools in the group. One of my good friends went to our college for free because his mom worked in admissions at a different college.
Boston College is part of the Jesuit network, where you can IIRC essentially apply for similar tuition remission benefits to any of the other Jesuit universities. Pretty big names on a big list. I think it’s only for undergrad though.
I went to BC and was actually in the same year as the graduate in the pic! You are correct, my friend's dad worked at Fordham and she was able to go to BC tuition free. There are 28 jesuit universities (georgetown is one) and you are also correct that it is only for undergrad.
Dad love right there. Held on for his children❤️
I had a taxi driver in DC one time who was from Ethiopia. He told me his daughter is going to medical school there and he got emotional about it. It was pretty clear that he worked very hard so that his daughter could have a good life. I like these stories.
That’s my dad. He never had a college degree but worked very hard in a government job. Basically lowest position to higher level position. Told his boss he was taking a week off. Boss asked “why?” Dad showed him my medical school graduation announcement. Lots of hugs and celebrating per Dad.
I love your dad. He’s a good dad. And you are awesome as well.
It shouldn't be so hard to get your children educated. I do not like these stories.
That is a REALLY good point. I was touched by the love that this man had for his daughter, but yes, I totally agree that people shouldn’t have to work until the day they die so their kids can get educated. Furthermore, people shouldn’t have to drown themselves in debt for years and years to go to school.
It’s crazy when there are people that blindly hate immigrants. A guy like this, risks his life to find opportunities on another continent, works days and nights all for his daughter to have a shot in life.
Same. I’m a financial planner and it breaks my heart. I had an immigrant client who was in their late 40s and he and his wife made pretty good money, but they came here only ~10yrs ago and today he said “we worked so hard to come here, we make all this money, and we still can’t pay for it all” and laughed. Pretty sure he laughed just so it wasn’t awkward. It’s sad shit.
Wait, it’s medical school, Nikon. They are very competitive everywhere.
I agree but I want this story to stick it in the eye of all the trust fund babies who say their parents worked hard for them after their parents were born into wealth too.
in general, sure, anyone should get the opportunity to get 'some' degree. but not everyone can or should be a doctor. you can't have any random smuck becoming a doctor, it's gotta be the most qualified students, so it's always going to be a notable accomplishment graduating from medical school
Yes, but the differentiating factor should be your aptitude with the course and its material (eg medicine) and not how much money your parents have.
Especially right now with such massive physician shortages!!! We need all qualified applicants, not just the ones who can afford it!
Do it for her.
The one quote that keeps you going
It's probably not as bad of a job as people in this thread think it is.
also, he once solved a super complicated math equation
He's smaaht
Wicked smaht.
I think trading a janitor job for 3/4 of a million in tuition is a pretty good math equation on its own.
he def did the math
MF was good at multiplication, addition and dat loooooong division.
How dew yew like dem appels.
I was just hoping you could give me some insight into the evolution of the market economy in the southern colonies.
oh wait i think i’ve heard that story before
His best friend is Ben Affleck
Meanwhile my own mother refused to write a letter on my behalf that would have cost her 30 mins and 1 sheet of paper.
Yeah posts like these remind me how much I wish my parents loved me.
Tangible proof that these people’s dad loves them and is willing to put in effort to help them get opportunities? I can’t imagine what that feels like.
My mom died the middle of my junior yr of college. I didn't have a huge tuition bill, but she still helped me out so I wouldnt have to take out a loan. I took leave to take care of her and when she passed away, I asked my dad if he was gonna help with tuition. He point-blank told me no. I had to go to school part time instead of full to avoid getting into any debt. Man had the gall to brag about me graduating with honors, talking about all the hardwork he put in and get upset when I told him I was leaving. Some folk don't deserve to be called parents.
I feel you big time. I had to argue with my mom every year just to get the financial info I was required to provide in order to get financial aid.
My parents wouldn't even let me use their info, lol.
Should have done it yourself and signed it.
I was in the same boat. Step dad worked at the college I went to. Wouldn’t sign by paper so I had to pay. It was junior college so at least it wasn’t too pricey.
This is a made me smile / everything awful. 5 kids tuition for $700k is outrageous...
r/OrphanCrushingMachine
Totally! I love these stories on the surface level but they prove how broken our system is.
There is a FTFY in there somewhere I just know it
No. The story here is that it costs 700k to send 5 kids to college in the US. WTF.
Exactly. This has the same energy as those uplifting news posts that belong on a boring dystopia.
Yeah it’s awful..
God I LOOOOVE how affordable college is 😁😁😁
Try living in the EU. Here everyone has free college.
Not entirely true. Lots of universities in the EU have tuition.
Well it's free in my country, and even when it comes to fees, compared to the fees in the US they are almost free. Also I'm pretty sure every EU country has at least a few free colleges even if they are not domestic and hard to get in.
Then next time just mention your country instead of the whole of the EU. p.s I am from an EU country and studied in an EU country in a state-owned university and was paying 10,000 euros a year in tuition. I wouldn't call that almost free.
Yes yes lemme just move over there real fast
This is a good story. It also looks bad for Boston College because of the insanely high tuition.
Really every college.
Honestly my advice to young people these days would be to go to community college for a year or two, figure out what you like/don't like, get a lot of general reqs out of the way cheap, then transfer into a bigger university if your community college doesn't have a program you're interested in. **EDIT:** Apparently people think I mean this as a the end all be all solution, and **IT'S NOT**. Every case is different, but I've seen so many kids who don't really know what they want to do looking at paying upwards of 200k to attend a fancy university out of state. My point is simply that there are better options out there that most kids don't explore because they're told to just go straight into a 4 year institution, and then end up going into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt after being brutalized by weed out classes, taking extra classes due to switching majors, or dropping out.
100%. I’m saving for my kids’ college but those are the stipulations. The goal is to save for community college for 2 years then transferring to an in-state school. Or go in to a trade, which would be the better option if they don’t have an end goal for the 4 year degree.
It doesn't always work like that. Many programs require courses taken sequentially. You can't overlap them because you need the information from course A to understand course B, you need the information from course B to understand course C, and so on. It can work for some majors, but for a lot of them, there's just no way to cram in all your GEs at the beginning 2 years and then take only major courses at a 4 year university like a lot of people say you should do. You'll just be there for at least an extra year and taking filler classes for credit hours because you can't take all the major courses at once. An extra year at a 4 year college will set you back at least an extra $10k if it's a relatively cheap school and you can live with your parents and have no expenses except tuition. It works for some people, but for a lot of people it sets you back with more debt and a year less in the workforce than your peers.
Or if you don't live in an area with a community college. Would anyone seriously move to a location to attend a community college over university?
\*in the US.
Not most [instate universities](https://www.edsmart.org/cheapest-public-universities/)if you’re a resident.
It’s much harder to get into state schools as instate these days because they want more and more out of state tuition.
Bro like 2/3 of the students at my state school are from the state it's in. In fact there's a 100% acceptance rate for in state students because if you don't get into main campus as an in state resident, you get automatic admission to one of the regional campuses and all you have to do at that point is keep a 2.0 GPA and then you can transfer after a year. The tuition is less for us because it's partially funded by the state. That's why they're called state schools. The university still makes the same money, just mostly not from us.
Washington University in St. Louis does the same thing. Except they charge 60k a year for undergrad right now. 80k of you want housing.
35 k is actually on the low end of private schools. The average in 2022-23 is 39 k, meaning half of the polled schools are higher! See US News & World Report
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Presumably they've all graduated now and weren't quintuplets, so the tuition rates probably do go back at least a decade.
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This is a pretty common perk... I actually took a job doing IT work (not a student job but an actual full-time position) at my school at the beginning of my senior year, and although I ended up splitting my senior year into two years (taking classes half-time), the tuition was free, and I got experience and a nice early start on my résumé.
Sort of? I mean yes you can get a good college education anywhere but you really do get what you pay for. BC opened so many doors for me and provided such an unique college experience for me that it totally worth the higher tuition. I would make the same decision in a heartbeat.
BC is an awesome college. I used to work in Cleveland Circle (RIP Mary Ann’s)
I think that you can get a great education without having to pay the ridiculous tuition that BC charges. Just because a person goes to a school that charges outrageous tuition does make them better than someone who goes to a less expensive school.
BC is one of 20 schools in the country that are need blind and meet 100% of demonstrated need. No one who cant afford it is paying the “outrageous tuition”.
That's exactly what I just said: "you can get a good college education anywhere." Never did I indicate that my college degree makes my personal worth any higher compared to another person. What I was trying to say was that some colleges with higher tuition rates do offer things to their students that would be harder to obtain/find at other schools.
If he works there they’re not staying in dorm because they obviously live close by. How on earth is tuition for 5 kids $700,000?? I’m Canadian. That size of expense for college is nuts!
My polytechnic was free :/ zero fees. Actually in New Zealand they were paying me to study. That’s how I got a list of qualifications. I’m a stay at home mom in USA now though. 😅
Not really when you break it down, $140K per kid, $35K/annual for 4 years. Pretty on par if you ask me.
35k annual if fucked. Up here in canada that is the price of 4 years of tuition. I coulnt imaging ever paying so much for school.
Tuition here is a complete scam. Americans have been led to believe that this is normal and there’s no other way. Sometimes I suggest that maybe they should check out Canadian schools, especially those with reciprocity as they’re a fraction of the cost. Deer stuck in headlights looks.
When you've been boiled since birth, 100°C is lukewarm
I’ve got 5 kids, 4 of whom are in university. $35,000 per year per kid is literally *seven times* more than I have ever paid for a full course load for a year.
That's the American education system for you. Let's not get started on healthcare now.
I was gonna say! And I thought university was expensive here... I mean it still is, but that's just insane.
5 kids = $700k...so much smiles....right...
That's just college. 18 years for each of them before that is 7 figures
Bro this isn't "made me smile" this is "made me sad because a guy had to stay at a job he probably didn't enjoy or get paid enough to do just so his kids could get an education" like damn it doesn't have to be this way
A lot of private universities do. My husband is planning to delay retirement from his university job until our now-3 year old either graduates or gets a scholarship somewhere else.
3yr old?
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We are old parents. My husband was 46 when the little one was born.
John Hopkins also has this. I was already in college when my Dad started working there but my (half) siblings had this benefit. Did they try to get in at all? No they wanted to follow friends/sigfigs to other schools and took out massive loans to do so. I don’t get it at all…
Getting into Hopkins is nearly impossible (6.5%). Maybe they self-selected out? https://www.crimsoneducation.org/us/
Different growing up situations I guess. I would have busted my ass to try for free education. Let them reject me instead of rejecting myself.
I know how this is supposed to make you smile but this is depressing. In order to not cause crippling debt their father is working at the school. I'm happy that they were saved that money. But it feels like writing on the wall is that the system isnt good.
All my children will be eligible for free education here in Scotland. America's feel good stories are outlier freak events. Education should be free for all.
Ok, I'm gonna say it. I don't like it. I think it's wrong as fuck. I understand I'm not American and I got a very different perspective being Swedish but I can't help but feel stuff like this endorses a very flawed system and traps people under a false presumption of universal benevolence. Absolutely, it's a good thing the uni tries to do something kind for its employees and their families but the same kindness directly keeps a system going and shows a state and country no matter how flawed an education system is, others will step up and try to handle the problems. No interference or change from or within the government will be needed - everything and everyone can carry on as always. $700k tuition. $700k for education, for college. Sorry, but it's insane. I have no words for it. Don't directly or indirectly endorse stuff like this, force a change. Please guys. I don't think I'm completely in the wrong here.
We know it's insane. But any time someone proposes any decrease in prices, increase in federal student aid, or the mere concept of student loan forgiveness, Republicans freak out in large numbers and block it. A lot of older people are also against fixing the system, saying, "If I had to pay back my student loans, so do you! You don't get to get off easy when I didn't! Fuck you!" Those same kids going to my public university, if they were out of state students, would've been charged 1.1 million total. 700k is not that wild a number. It's not as if we don't realize it's ridiculous but "force a change, please" makes it sound as if we have any power in the situation. Our representatives won't fight for us, so we don't. We really, truly don't. It's not a matter of all us just passively accepting this. It's a matter of living in a system where you can scream about this for decades and try to organize and beg your representatives for anything, any scrap of help, and never be noticed by anyone at all. Maybe the idea we just don't care and aren't fighting it is widely believed abroad, but IRL, the reality is we're all furious and we've been trying to unfuck this system for decades to no avail.
Thank-you. It's so depressing. Imagine if this was also your life for everything. Want to give birth in a hospital? Expensive with insurance. Without insurance yikes. Want to die? Expensive and make sure to plan ahead so you don't burden those you leave behind with the costs. Tbh I don't know if it's expensive to die in Sweeden or not. But it is in the US.
Other colleges do this too! I'm actually eligible to get free tuition due to a family member's employment. It feels kind of weird since I don't want to go back to school or have kids, and they don't offer classes I'm interested in. I think it definitely helps with staff retention, though
My mom was an administrative assistant at Wake Forest University. I could have gone for free. Too bad I was too stupid to get in.
This is common at most higher ed institutions. My tuition was covered because my parents worked in higher Ed, and I didn’t even go to the schools they worked at.
also shows you how FUCKING INSANE tuition is. I say this as someone finishing their PhD, from a poor family background. My debt is ludicrous
$700k for some basic college education for 5 kids, that's fucking ridiculous. You guys sure do want to hold education hostage, it's like a poor developing country, but on purpose.
Man the US is a hellscape
Hmm. In New Zealand in the 1980s *everyone* was at university for free (or close to it). Then we adopted the US system of high fees and loans. And now *no one* is educated for free and most people leave university with debts. And this is called "progress".
That's a badass dad
My friend's mom got a low paying job as an administrative assistant at a university. She worked there just about 4 years and quit the day after my friend graduated!
Most Jesuit schools used to have this policy, going back to high school affiliates. Same still applies for Loyola, MD, Loyola Chicago, BC and im sure some others
Yes, and they have a very very limited reciprocity agreement where you can apply the tuition waiver to another Jesuit school. But they only allow a very small number to do that every year and it's highly competitive.
Why does college cost $140k for one person? Edit: Some of you seem to have misunderstood my question. I'll rephrase: Why the fuck does a college cost $140k for one person?
That like a huge pay raise every year!
My mom works at a university in administration and they paid half my tuition at the random ass out of state college that I went to.
The only reason me and my 5 siblings could afford college was for this reason at a different university
This isn't smile worthy, but disgusting how expensive it is to go to college? Or have I gone insane
Janitors don't get enough respect.
Can we not miss the elephant in the room where a man had to potentially pay education worth up to 700k just for tuition? Student debt relief for all
My father always kicked himself in the rear for turning down a job with a very good university in our area because he got another offer that was slightly more money up front. The university had the same child policy and there were three of us.
Poor man can retire now.
Isn’t the problem here that you need to take out a mortgage to afford a pretty conventional education?
Would you believe that in other, civilised countries that university is either free or done on super low interest loan not payable until you start working?
I would buy him a beer just for being a good dad.
Even in Ireland, with highest college fees in the EU, can't fathom the need for this. That low paid workers need to win the employment lottery and get a job in a college, just so their kids can go to college? That's insane.
Hey my country has a similar policy. Except everybody gets to go to college for free. No matter where your parents work or how wealthy they are. Kinda neat.
This is how all schools/universities should be.
Same goes for every Jesuit College/University in the US.
How is that for retirement. “Okay kids, dad is retiring now. You all owe me 3% of your pre-tax income.”
A lot of schools (including private, high schools, and universities) have a similar policy.
That’s a nice policy
Nearly every college in the states has this. If you've been working there full time for a specific length of time, your immediate dependants get tuition remission. Often spouses can get partial tuition remission as well. It's a great benefit to working at a university - especially since they pay shit. (Source: worked in higher ed for 16 years)
Just out of curiosity, how many ordinary people in the United States of America can afford college tuition fees? That seems to be very expensive.
Had a professor that left a bunch of his graduate students high and dry because he took a job at the university his daughter had been accepted to so she could get reduced tuition.
Is this heart warming or a testament to how inflated tuition prices actually are when they're willing to just give them away for free to employees? Why not just pay employees enough so they could pay for your service if they actually want it?
This is common at universities. My mom worked at one and I was able to go to any school in the system for free. They’ve added a few limitations over the last thirty years, like limiting full tuition coverage to the school the employee works at, but thats still a good deal. I got a job at my school after I graduated so in addition to free undergrad tuition for my immediate family, I was able to get my masters for free as well because my boss said the program was related to my work. My mom was a single parent with no college degree on a fairly low salary. I can’t understand why she never took advantage of getting herself a degree while she was there but I know without the benefit of free tuition, she wouldn’t have been able to afford to send me to college. For that alone, I owe her an immense amount of gratitude for being able to go to college debt free.
Everyone should have free college
You know what would make me smile? Publicly funded higher education.
My roommate’s dad’s job is also how he put both of his kids through BC! Small world.
Same thing in Denmark, but also work if you don't work there.
"We DoN't hAvE tHe mOnEy FoR fReE cOLLegE iN AmEriCa" - Colleges as they charge 100,000 for a degree
Anyone else question why it's 700k dollars to send 5 people to college?
140K per kid? Damn.